PlayStation Vita TV Launches In Japan, Americans Feel Left Out

The PlayStation Vita TV hit Japanese markets today, and American gamers are still waiting for an announcement from Sony.

At midnight, Sony's PlayStation 4 will finally touch down in the U.S., but Japanese gamers will need to wait patiently until February 22nd. Today, however, Japan did receive a consolation prize: the PlayStation Vita TV.

The Vita TV, Sony's answer to set-top boxes like the Ouya, is about the size of an iPhone, and allows users to enjoy PlayStation Vita titles on a television. The little console will also work as an extender for the PlayStation 4, but that functionality obviously doesn't do much for Japanese gamers at the moment.

The system was unveiled during the Tokyo Game Show in September, but Sony has been toying with the idea for several years. This week, in an interview with Famitsu magazine, software designer Toru Yamamoto discussed his role in the Vita TV's conceptualization. "We knew from before its release in 2011 that PS Vita was a platform capable of all kinds of things," Yamamoto said. "So I proposed the idea that, instead of restricting the PS Vita system software to a single portable console, we could spread it out in other forms as well. That's where the idea of making a PS Vita you connected to a TV came from."

So far, Sony hasn't revealed any plans to bring the Vita TV to the U.S., but that isn't entirely surprising. After all, the PlayStation 4 is the company's primary focus.

Several over-priced units have already popped up on eBay, so it probably won't be long before the console shows up in the States. However, it's safe to assume that there will be a slew of compatibility issues, so importing a Vita TV may not be the best use of your money.